We have an old double oven cooker. It threw the trip recently and seemed to be do to with the main oven. I removed the element, tested it and there was no continuity. I replaced it while I ordered a new element and since then its thrown the main trip every time the main cooker switch on the wall is turned on (no heat on anywhere hob or top oven). I thought this was a bit odd but for £12 would get a new element and see if that fixes it. New element fitted and again, with no knobs turned on in the cooker itself, it is throwing the trip again. Any ideas what else this could possibly be? The old element had definitely gone so I figured the new one was worth a shot but that there may be another fault as it was throwing the trip without any of the knobs on the cooker being turned on.
- Thread starter reb78
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As @daleyd has asked is it the main switch or fuse keeps tripping? You say "main trip" do you mean the main switch on the CU?
You have ruled out an element as you have replaced it but what about the other oven, that element could be on the wayout or has failed, also check lamp holders.
As you say cooker is old it could be internal wiring or board that's had it and causing the trip,
As it is a D/oven I'm assuming it's a 10mm supply although if wiring is old it could be 6mm.
If old a lot of current has passed through the cable and can become brittle over time, it might have melted at connection points, so worth checking.
MetalMonkey
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A lot of ovens will have a thermal cut out as well which is worth checking.
Sometimes new elements have a lot of moisture in them and need to be cycled a few times to dry them out otherwise they can cause tripping, especially if your installation is quite close in terms of leakage current, it doesn't take much.
Sometimes new elements have a lot of moisture in them and need to be cycled a few times to dry them out otherwise they can cause tripping, especially if your installation is quite close in terms of leakage current, it doesn't take much.
Main trip - I mean the main switch in the consumer unit that kills the power to everything.
Thanks. I can check the connections out. I am not sure on the size - is there an easy way to tell by measuring diameters of the wiring?
No. Checked that, but thanks for the suggestion
The thing is, its tripping the main switch in the CU immediately on switching the wall switch on before anything on the cooker is turned on. I am wondering if there are two faults and the element was just one of them and perhaps something like @Mark 5 is suggesting is the other
It would suggest to me if not getting to the point of powering the oven on but just turning on the switch, either faulty switch, they are robust but they do fail or it is the cable to the cooker switch.
Isolate power via the CU check the switch, the OD of 6mm is just under 14mm, 10mm is around 18mm.
A double oven should be supplied by a minimum of 10mm cable.
Excellent. Thankyou.
dobbslc
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Assuming that's an RCD used as a main switch?
If it's an RCD tripping it's an earth fault so a dodgy element can cause this even if it still works.
You need to disconnect the oven to check the wiring in the red on off switch to see if there's a problem with that, then check where the 6/10mm cable connects to the over terminals.
You then need to meter out the elements, check between the live / neutral terminals and earth, you need a high resistance here.
Then check across the terminals, a 2kW element will measure roughly 25 ohms.
Also check all the internal wiring as it's usually not well protected from the razor sharp edges of the casing on these things.
I had a nearly new oven tripping the RCD and it was a small cable rubbing on a sharp edge where it was just flapping about.
daleyd
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You make all good points but the BIB,'mazin how many that issue trips up.
Onoff
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The oven could be inherently leaky to earth and the RCD itself over sensitive or faulty. Then we get into RCD tripping times, ramp time etc. without an RCD tester etc.
Is your consumer unit one with "two identical things" in, as in 2 RCDs, one that keeps tripping?
My old board had an upfront 30mA RCD. Was always tripping. Fitting the new, all RCBO board has been a godsend.
Is your consumer unit one with "two identical things" in, as in 2 RCDs, one that keeps tripping?
My old board had an upfront 30mA RCD. Was always tripping. Fitting the new, all RCBO board has been a godsend.
dobbslc
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Glad it's not just me baffled by that
brightspark
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you realy need an insulation tester. make sure the mainswitch on the cooker cotroll is turned off and test the circuits any shortage to earth from the live or neutral will show up on meter you can disconect the elements and test them individualy any showing a fault can be replaced and then test again at the main terminals in cooker with everything connected
